Saskatchewan Reined Cowhorse Association
SRCHA
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Saskatchewan Reined Cowhorse Association SRCHA
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Agrium
Inc. Cow Horse Futurity ~ Derby Show 2008 |
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Taylor-Made For Grant Devine and Agrium
Inc. – the Reined Cow Horse Run Sept.
14, 2008 - Golden Mile Arena, Moose Jaw, SK.
– something rather special happened. A small part of it was un-intentional
but most of this incident occurred because of community support, planning,
dedication and hard work. During
the Saskatchewan Reined Cowhorse Association’s
Classic Derby & Futurity Show, Taylor Douglas of Yellow Grass, SK
was competing on various horses in various Ranch Cutting and Working Cowhorse classes – working hard to take home some part of
the approximately $20,000.00 offered in cash and awards, available primarily
from gracious sponsors such as Agrium, Inc. Taylor
is a young, up and coming horse trainer – born and raised in Saskatchewan
from a solid “equine” background under the guidance of his parents Brenda
and Barry Clemens of Lumsden. The special occurrence I’m referring to is the “Taylor-made fence-work run” of Sept. 14 to win the Working Cowhorse 3 Year Old Futurity competition. It went something like this:
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She was what we call "a bad cow" - a tough 800 pound heifer, full of run and attitude. She blew into the arena, reminding you of a Spanish fighting bull, to face off with Taylor Douglas astride the 3 year old Quarter Horse named Miss Olena Jo. For those of you unfamiliar with working cowhorse, the elements of fence-work are 1) to ‘box’ the cow at the end of the arena, to exhibit your control of the animal; 2) to take the cow at speed down the long wall of the arena and turn it at least once in each direction; and 3) to then move the cow off the arena wall and ‘circle it’ going each direction, much like a figure-8. Of course, the cows know nothing about this plan. On Sept 14th, Taylor’s cow was obviously opposed to the idea, in general. |
But,
in true cowhorse style, Taylor stepped his horse
forward and met the bovine as she tried to make a run for the far end
of the arena. Miss Olena Jo stared down the cow and, with a few quick
maneuvers they had sent the critter back to the end wall to think things
over. Taylor only had 2 and ½ minutes to complete the entire pattern with
this cow, and he knew she was going to be a handful – so he quickly ‘boxed’
her with a turn each way on the short wall. Then, because he trusted this
talented young horse to handle the job, he sent the cow toward the long
arena wall for the fence turns. Now, this is supposed to be done ‘at speed’
– but the cow was blazing fast without any added encouragement from Taylor
! The cow was almost half way down the arena before Taylor and
Miss Olena Jo set off after her – but in a few huge strides, they were
beside her and Miss Olena Jo darted into position, set her butt into the
sand and turned that cow around in a single fluid motion.
Now, the cow was thinking “run hard” back to the entrance gate
so Taylor and the mare had to scoot to keep up, but again a gallant effort
put them beside and ahead, and turning the cow again. Circling - it can range from a tight spin round a nearly standstill cow, to a high speed figure eight using the entire arena, depending on the bovine dancing partner. Taylor's cow had a look on her face like "I can't believe this guy - he won't let me get away with anything !" So, the belligerent heifer decided to hug the wall, thinking she could foil Taylor's plans. Not so, said Miss Olena Jo - at a dead run she nosed her way against the wall and peeled that heifer off. The first circle took them off to the middle, then as Taylor repositioned to complete the second circle, the heifer was back against the wall. Again, Miss Olena Jo peeled her off and handily circled the cow. |
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The really interesting thing is that Grant Devine was standing at ring side - and the sweep of the second circle brought the cow heading straight to where Grant was standing. Taylor's run ended as the Judge blew the whistle and the heifer made a sandblaster stop eye-ball to eye-ball with Grant Devine. (I think she may even have blown her nose all over him !) Taylor pulled up Miss Olena Jo with a huge smile, having delivered the cow directly into Grant's lap, so to speak. |
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see, Grant Devine owns Miss Olena Jo. He was there at the SRCHA event
primarily as the board representative of the major sponsor, Agrium Inc.
- and also through his sponsorship and involvement from his Pelican Lake
Performance Horses program. The
look on Grant's face as this working cowhorse
run won the SRCHA's first ever Futurity was a sight I won't soon forget.
His involvement with Agrium, Inc. - the world's largest retailer of agricultural
products - and his passion for the sport of reined cowhorse,
his support of local trainers like Taylor Douglas, his belief in our Province's
leadership role in sport: all seemed to come together in one moment. Of
course, it was un-intentional that the cow was delivered directly to him
that day, but it seemed a suiting thank-you. It was "Taylor-made". The
SRCHA has been building the sport of Reined Cowhorse
in the province for 5 years, through small jackpot shows held in various
regions from Swift Current (during Frontier Days) to Norquay,
North Battleford and Saskatoon. Moose Jaw was
selected as the location for this first special Derby & Futurity Show
because of location, the suitability of the facility and the keen interest
of General Manager, Glen Fafard. More than $20,000
in cash and silver buckles were won Sept. 13 & 14 there on the sands
of the Golden Mile, and we expect bigger and better things for the event
there in Sept 2009. So
many sponsors and volunteers deserve recognition, for without them these
types of shows simply could not occur. Agrium, Inc. our major sponsor,
whose company has positively impacted every aspect of agriculture in the
province for years; hearty support from local Moose Jaw businesses like
Golden West Trailers, Moose Jaw Ford, Toyota and Dodge dealerships, and
Murray Chev Olds; horse breeders like Vince
Denis of HorsesThatWork.com, Trudy & Lloyd Zoerb, Pelican Lake and Neilson Quarter Horses; oil industry
businesses such as Prairie Mud and Prairie Chem
(of the equine-loving Frehlick family in Estevan), A&S Oilfield and Supreme Oilfield; members of
the construction industry like MR Steel of Hague and Nelson Lumber who
make the province grow; Veterinarians like the folks at Prairie Animal
Health in Estevan, farriers such as Norm Kohle of Grandora; Frank’s Saddlery of Lloydminster and Sunrise Saddlery
of Asquith; and photographer Dallas Pole of Cowgirl Creations, Mortlach. Bobbi Jo Reeves of Moose Jaw announcing for 2 days;
Susan Echlin, Bonnie Schellenberg and Jamie
Pryor serving as scribes for the Judges; and countless other behind-the-scenes
helpers – all made the show run like clockwork. |
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The SRCHA made our fund-raiser Raffle draw at the Golden Mile on Sept 14 as well, presenting the second prize of a custom headstall from Sunrise Saddlery, Garcia bit from Ken Anderson of EH-Bar in Elfross and romal reins from Roger Johnson of YOR Appaloosa, Asquith to the happy winner Jamie Pryor of Moose Jaw. First prize was the handsome started 2-year old AQHA gelding from JoAnn Vayro of Sonningdale presented to the winner Tanya Klippenstein of Estevan. Her happy screams may still be echoing across the sands of the Golden Mile ! |
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sponsors are critical to the success of these events, but the competitors
make it a showcase for talented trainers, superbly bred horses, novice riders
and youth. The SRCHA Classic Derby & Futurity provided hours of outstanding
performances from all levels for riders. Kimberly Ludwig, riding in the
10-13 Year Old Ranch Cutting, gave us all a thrill with her horsemanship
display; Trudy Zoerb, a forty-something Novice
Non Pro, had a blast on her little gelding facing off with a snorting cow
the same size as her horse; Hugh Ryder, an accomplished ‘ryder’,
set the standard with the highest scoring fence work run of the week-end;
and Kelly Ashdown with his 3 year old won some money from the folks on seasoned
horses showing in the Open Non Pro. Everyone was pleased to be judged by
the NRCHA-carded specialists, Deb Witty of WA on Saturday and Ron Echlin
of AB on Sunday. But, no matter where they stood in their classes, the competitors
came away feeling proud of their successes. |
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Kimberly Ludwig & Definitely Trouble in the Cutting Pen (above) |
Our
Youth 10-13 Year old Aggregate Champion was Kimberly Ludwig
of Lumsden, who gave us a cutting clinic on her Sunday run especially,
with her partner “Definitely Trouble”.
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The Youth 14-18 Division was a bit of a shoot-out between our Reserve Champion, Bobby Jo Moore of Preeceville on her gelding “Jasper”, and our ultimate Champion Zach Stauffer of Estevan on “Sugs Lil Hickory”. Zach delivered an impressive fence run to win the over-all high point buckle. [Zach Stauffer & Sugs Lil Hickory pictured left, with Rod Thiessen and Grant Devine of Agrium Inc. presenting the Champion buckle.] |
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The
SRCHA Novice Non Pro Division is the “entry level” rider division, for those
adults of any age just getting started in the sport. With strong class entries, this division was
contested hotly until the last fence run on Sunday. Congratulations to our
Champion Over-All – Donna Reid of Swift Current on “Jazzed
Up Cheno”, and to our
Reserve Champion Novice Non Pro – Carol Hollinger of Esterhazy
riding “CW Strait Tequila”. A mere one point behind her in third place was
Tanya Klippenstein of Estevan
riding “Pepperoni Rose” from the Frehlick program,
and Donna Reid with her second horse “Vanilla Cowboy” and Dora Hakl of Lumsden on “Kittys Doll Pine” completed the fourth and fifth placing over-all. |
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The Intermediate Non Pro category was tough. The top five riders were in a tight formation of points to the end and all came away with a little cash in their pockets for day money, but there can be only one Champion ! Lloyd Zoerb of Lloydminster with his gelding “Mickeys Root Beer Doc” earned that title, and his happy runner-up was Noreen Fenske of Theodore, SK with her paint horse “Isle Wink”. Tegan Marshall of Yellow Grass captured third place, riding Major Pepinic Penny (a horse also being shown by Taylor Douglas in the 4 Year Old Derby); Steve Ludwig of Lumsden, on his young stallion “Pepcid Olena”, garnered fourth place, and Willie Thompson of Glaslyn with “Duchess Iron Bar Image” finished as fifth over-all. |
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Open Non Pro was also exciting to the very end, of course. This class was especially interesting because the horses ranged from 3 years old to seasoned 11+ year olds, all with talented riders on board. Kelly Ashdown of Swift Current finished the week-end with his handy little 3 year old in fourth place over-all; Angela Moore of Preeceville with “Anchor Rockin Art” captured third place. Jardi Welsch of Cut Knife experienced an unfortunate equipment malfunction with her good horse “Poco Doc Roany” but still came away as the Reserve Over-All Open Non Pro Champion. The top honors were presented to Todd Britton of Rokeby, SK with his partner “Smokey”. |
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The SRCHA Junior Horse class, for 4 and 5 years olds shown in a snaffle or bosal, tallied combined points for Ranch Cutting and Working Cowhorse classes over both days. The top spots were tight and the cutting pen made the difference between first and second place. Congratulations to the Over-All Champion Junior Horse – 5 year old “Majors Pic A Nic” owned & ridden by Brenda Clemens of Lumsden, and to the Reserve Champion, 4 year old Appaloosa “YOR Tiny Dancer” owned & ridden by Roger Johnson of Asquith. Third place over-all was awarded to 5 year old “CW Strait Tequilla” ridden by Carol Hollinger of Esterhazy. Fourth spot went to another 5 year old “MH Sweet Plays” shown by Tyrel Pole of Kelsey, AB and owned by Walter Chesla of Gibbons, AB who was only shown in the Working Cowhorse classes; and fifth place went to “dad”, Kevin Pole of Mortlach, SK riding his 5 year old “Ima Sun Ofa Gun”. |
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The SRCHA Open Bridle Horse class was for any age horse shown down the fence in a regulation cowhorse bridle, again combining points earned over two days in Ranch Cutting and Working Cowhorse classes. Horse’s ages ranged from 5 years to 8 years old, and some pretty outstanding displays were made by the talented riders ! Only 3 points separated these horses from first to fourth place after day one, so the pressure was really on for the Sept. 14 classes. The team of Beau Smith of Abbey, SK his 6 year old stallion “Scat Cat Solanos” delivered an exciting fence run to achieve top honors and the title of SRCHA Champion Open Horse. The Reserve Champion Over-All went to the 5 year old Appaloosa mare “YOR Fine Line” owned & shown by Roger Johnson of Asquith. Kevin Pole of Mortlach with his 6 year old “Majors Two Peppy” captured third place; and Rod Theissen of Estevan earned fourth place points over-all with his 8 year old Paint “Smokin Wrangler”. Taylor Douglas aboard the 7 year old “Instant Jewel” finished the week-end in fifth place over-all. |
2008 Derby Champion: Major Pepinic Penny ridden by Taylor Douglas |
The first SRCHA Derby competition showcased the 4 year olds, ridden in a snaffle or bosal, in Working Cowhorse classes over 2 days. Sept 13th was judged by NRCHA-carded Deb Witty of Washington and Sept. 14th by NRCHA-carded Ron Echlin of Alberta. Aggregate scores
and money earned for the top five places are: SRCHA Derby Champion: Major
Pepinic Penny, ridden by Taylor Douglas
and owned by Tegan Marshall of Yellow Grass,
with a score of 288.5, earning $1597.50 dollars. |
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The
highlight of the week-end, of course, was the 3 Year Old Snaffle Bit Futurity.
On Sept. 13th, the 3 year olds showed us their moxy in the Ranch Cutting pen under judge Deb Witty. A very
tight grouping of scores had Rod Theissen with
Acre Tari Smoke in the lead by 1 point, with Miss Olena Jo shown by Taylor Douglas in second, Lil Tia Maria
shown by Beau Smith in third; Majors Smoke Signal with Taylor Douglas fourth;
Noche shown by Hugh Ryder in fifth and Calvin Olson with Mr.
Roan Doc in sixth place. The fence
work on Sunday, Sept. 14 judged by Ron Echlin was truly amazing. The cattle
were tough and these young horses had to be fearless and fast to get the
job done. When the dust settled,
the score board had changed ! Miss Olena
Jo, owned by Grant Devine of Pelican Lake Performance Horses and
ridden by Taylor Douglas, scored a 142 to earn a well deserved Championship
and $1466.50 ! Taylor Douglas also presented a gutsy fence work
run with Majors Smoke Signal, owned by Barry & Brenda
Clemens, scoring a 143 to move up from fourth to second place, winning $1062
dollars. Acre Tari Smoke from Frehlick Quarter
Horses of Estevan, shown by Rod Theissen,
was a half point behind and finished with third place honors earning $959.
Lil Tia Maria owned by Bill Horby and shown by
Beau Smith sat fourth over-all, earning $352 and Noche,
owned by Deanna Reesor of BC and shown by Hugh
Ryder of Eastend, finished in fifth place. |
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The SRCHA has been lucky to attract all the right "sort" of people to build a strong network for the sport of reined cowhorse; people who dedicate themselves to fairness and fun and who work long hours so that the Association can offer these shows for everyday riders to come out and learn the sport, make some friends and have a blast doing it. Our 2008 Board of Directors: SRCHA Sec/Treasurer, Angela Moore of Preecevile, from rodeo to showmanship, she's been there done that (and her daughter BobbyJo and companion-in-arms Michelle Chupik are always working behind the scenes). Rod Thiessen of Estevan - SRCHA Vice President - offers the know-how of years of experience and also sets a balanced tone "do things right as you can, have fun and don't complain". (His dedication brought him to the #1 spot in Canada on the 2008 Cutting Horse circuit.) Lloyd Zoerb, of Lloydminster, as practical a cowboy (cowboy turned reiner, that is) as you'll find; Brenda Clemens of Lumsden, respected throughout the province as an equine leader; Bryan Birkett of North Battleford, a gentle giant who believes in what he's doing and is doing what he believes; JoAnn Vayro of Sonningadale, one of the Alberta transplants who has brought a great horse breeding program to our province; Henry Schellenberg of Gronlid, a quiet fellow who lets his actions speak volumes (always organizing or involved in equine events from his regular Horse Sales, to clinics at the home arena); and Randy Barre of Guernsey - nobody enjoys competing on his horses more, win or lose ! |
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Sept. 2009 Sept. 12 -13 SRCHA FUTURITY & DERBY SHOW in Moose Jaw's Golden Mile Arena. NRCHA Carded Judges over 2 days, Silver Buckles & Added $$ !! {In 2008, over $19,000. in cash was awarded at this show, plus buckles & prizes.} Pre-enter with SRCHA or call 306-329-8600 ENTRIES MUST BE POSTMARKED BY AUGUST 15 |
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